Key Takeaways:
- The best temperature for your Texas home depends on your sweet spot between cost and comfort.
- If you’re trying to find the right temperature for you, consider setting the AC to 78 degrees and making minor adjustments in either direction until you reach your ideal balance. You want it to be cool enough to stay comfortable, but high enough to keep your energy bills in check.
- If babies are in the home, the ideal temperature for sleeping is much cooler to ensure their safety. Plan to keep the house between 68 and 72 degrees while they sleep. Older and elderly adults should also consider cooler temperatures, such as 74 degrees.
Texas summers are reliably hot and humid, which makes one question come up every year: What’s the best temperature to set the AC? While there’s no perfect number for everyone, you can find the best temperature for your home based on whether your priority is saving money, staying cool, or finding a balance.
Here’s how to find your ideal summer AC setting and tips to keep cooling costs in check.
What Temperature Should I Set My Air Conditioner in Summer?
As a starting point, you can set your air conditioner at 78 degrees, then adjust the temperature up or down until you’re comfortable. When you want to save more on your electric bill, you can increase the temperatures until you’re happy with the balance between staying cool and saving money. You can set the temperature a few degrees higher when you’re not home for more cost savings.
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Air Conditioning Settings for Texas
Air conditioner settings for Texas aren’t any different, although the humidity may make your home feel hotter than in drier states. There are a few ways to combat this effect and stay cool in Texas, such as using ceiling, portable, and box fans around the home.
You could also seal air leaks around windows and doors to prevent hot and humid air from entering through gaps. Blinds, curtains, and shades are another common and very effective way of keeping the temperature in your home down.
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How Do I Slash My Electric Bill While Keeping My Home Cool?
You can do numerous things to lower your electric bill without sacrificing comfort. Here are some of the best tips to get you started.
1. Adjust Your Thermostat Throughout the Day
Setting your thermostat to different temperatures throughout the day can significantly reduce your energy costs. You can save up to 10% per year on your utility costs by adjusting your thermostat setting by 7°-10°F from its standard setting for 8 hours per day (warmer in the summer, cooler in the winter). This is especially easy to do if you work outside the home. The closer your thermostat gets to the outdoor temperature, the higher savings percentage you’ll receive.
2. Install Ceiling Fans
Heating and cooling account for almost 50% of energy use in the United States. [2] A simple and very effective way to practice energy conservation is by installing ceiling fans in your home’s living spaces.
Ceiling fans use substantially less energy than air conditioners, and the airflow that ceiling fans create helps air conditioners work more efficiently. Better energy efficiency equals less electricity use and, in turn, lower utility bills.
Plus, using ceiling fans allows you to increase your thermostat’s settings during warm summer months by four degrees Fahrenheit without experiencing a reduction in your comfort level.
3. Install a Programmable Thermostat
Smart thermostats are programmable thermostats that take convenience to a whole new level. With smart thermostats, you can control your home’s internal temperature in real-time from anywhere in the world. Like other programmable thermostats, you can set them to adjust during certain times throughout each day automatically.
Smart thermostats have a lot of other perks. With the touch of a button, you can adjust your home’s temperature based on the humidity level inside your home. And smart thermostats do more than just follow your pre-determined settings. They’re able to learn your schedule and preferences. This helps you save energy by automatically adjusting temperature based on the weather, the number of people in your home, and several other factors.
Since heating costs can change by about 5% for every degree that you adjust your thermostat, and your cooling costs can flex by 3% per degree, the installation of a smart thermostat is pretty much guaranteed to save you money and energy.
4. Don’t Adjust Your Air Conditioner Settings for Quick Relief
Avoid turning your AC temperature colder than usual to adjust your home’s temperature quickly. While it sounds like this may work in theory, it won’t create cool air in your home any faster. However, it could cause excessive cooling, leading to unnecessary expenses.
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5. Invest in an ENERGY STAR Air Conditioning Unit
ENERGY STAR is a program created by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to help American consumers purchase energy-efficient products. The U.S. Department of Energy backs this program, which has two main goals:
Reduce greenhouse gas emissions along with other inefficient energy use-caused pollution.
Make it easier for American consumers to purchase energy-efficient products that help them save on utility bills and energy without sacrificing comfort, performance, or other features.
By installing a high-efficiency air conditioner, it’s possible to reduce your air conditioning energy consumption by as much as 50%, depending on how old your current unit is. With these energy-efficient systems, the AC unit recycles the water it uses to run instead of consuming it as traditional units do.
As a bonus, most top-rated units are reliable in extreme temperatures (as high as 131 degrees Fahrenheit). And, if there is a natural disaster, a number of models can run on a generator.
AC Temperatures for Different Needs
As your family might like to remind you, your home’s indoor temperature isn’t one size fits all. You may need to adjust your AC settings if you’re in a humid climate or have people in your home who feel warmer or are of a certain age. Below, we go into more detail for each.
AC Temperature for Humidity Control
Humid climates can result in having too much moisture inside your home, putting you and your home at risk of mold and mildew. Not to mention peeling paint, rotting wood, and other humidity-related problems that most of us prefer to avoid. Fortunately, running an air conditioner can help lower humidity. The ideal indoor relative humidity level is 30-50%.
If you have a humidifier, it may have a built-in humidistat that will monitor your home’s humidity level. If not, you can purchase a hygrometer for around $20 from most hardware stores or Amazon. When it comes to humidity, the rule of thumb is to set your thermostat as high as your comfort level allows, as long as it’s cool enough to ensure a healthy humidity level.
AC Temperature for Comfort
Keeping your home temperature set to 78 degrees Fahrenheit in the summertime may be too warm for some, especially those looking for much-needed relief from extreme heat.
To find your ideal temperature for personal comfort, set your thermostat to the recommended 78 degrees Fahrenheit (or 68 degrees Fahrenheit in the winter). If you find that you’re too hot or cold, slowly start adjusting your thermostat one degree at a time until you arrive at the perfect comfort level.
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AC Temperature Needs by Age
Room temperatures that are too hot can be dangerous to babies and older adults. For babies, the recommended temperature is between 68 and 72 degrees Fahrenheit, especially while sleeping. Warmer room temperatures are thought to make babies more susceptible to Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS).
For older adults and the elderly, keeping indoor temperatures at 74 degrees or below in the summer is recommended.
Best AC Temperature FAQs
What thermostat setpoint balances comfort and savings during summer?
The thermostat setpoint that balances comfort and savings during summer is around 78°F when you’re home and a few degrees higher when you’re away. Adjusting the temperature by even 3–5°F can meaningfully reduce your cooling costs without sacrificing comfort.
Can smart thermostats and schedules lower cooling costs without discomfort?
Smart thermostats and schedules can lower cooling costs without discomfort by automatically adjusting your home’s temperature based on your habits and when you’re away. These devices help you maintain comfort while reducing wasted cooling when no one is home.
Don’t Wait for Summer to Get Started
Finding the right AC temperature in a Texas summer can be a guessing game, but once you find your sweet spot, you can make small adjustments when prioritizing comfort over savings and vice versa. However, if you have babies or older adults in your home or live in a high-humidity area, you’ll likely need to keep the house on the cooler side.
In all cases, you can save more with smart habits like using fans, installing a programmable thermostat, and going with energy plans that give you the best rates for your usage. Check out Just Energy’s plans to see is we can find you a more affordable electricity rate.
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Sources
1. U.S. Department of Energy. “Programmable Thermostats.” Accessed May 28, 2025. https://www.energy.gov/energysaver/thermostats
2. ENERGY STAR. “Heat & Cool Efficiently.” Accessed May 28, 2025. https://www.energystar.gov/saveathome/heating-cooling
3. U.S. Department of Energy. “Fans for Cooling.” Accessed May 28, 2025. https://www.energy.gov/energysaver/home-cooling-systems/fans-cooling
4. Town of Wake Forest. “Energy Conservation Tips.” Accessed May 28, 2025. https://www.wakeforestnc.gov/customer-service-central/energy-conservation-tips
5. Washington Post. “You don’t have to run your air conditioner 24 hours a day. Here’s what to do.” June 26, 2025. https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-solutions/2023/06/25/air-conditioner-energy-savings/
6. Ohio Department of Children and Youth. “Infant Safe Sleep.” Accessed May 28, 2025. https://childrenandyouth.ohio.gov/for-families/maternal-infant-wellness/infant-safe-sleep
7. Care.com. “The best sleeping temperature for seniors, according to experts.” December 3, 2024. https://www.care.com/c/best-sleeping-temperature-for-seniors/